What kind of magic exists in your world?
oh boy I have a whole lengthy document that goes into detail about my magic system lol. I'll try to giev you the simplified rundown, and while I don't want people to outright copy all my personal story ideas, I don't mind if people take inspiration from it. I like sharing my ideas!
essentially, the world is full of magical energy. it's referred to as "ambient magic". This ambient magic can affect different species in different ways, being connected to souls and usually manifesting in some form of enhanced ability by way of the nervous system. I haven't decided how much this applies to animals. It is also a matter of debate amongst magic-biologists whether people get extra powerful abilities because they are people, or if having the extra powerful magic boosts is what drove them to evolve into sapient people.
through the nervous system, pretty much every people species has experienced some boosts to their endocrine system, allowing them to have longer lifespans than their base species might usually have. This is why elves live multiple centuries. Some people species simply got a bigger endocrine system boost than others, and it seems to be shifting in recent generations, bringing some longer lived species to a shorter lifespan while the shorter lived species are gaining years. Like the ambient magic is starting to balance them out.
Outside the endocrine system boost, pretty much every people species has a bonus ability. In the sylvanids (elves, vampires, drow) it varies more. Elves have the most varied abilities, because they adapted to a wider range of environments. So one elf might have a boost to the muscular system, but another might have a boost to their immune system. Vampires and drow kept their enhancements in the endocrine system, with vampires specializing in the production of chemicals in the salivary glands and drow just going hog wild with their bizarrely specific hormones.
The orciformes/urukin (orcs, gnomes, haufin/"halflings") the boost went to the occipital lobe. they each have a different form of "vision" that aids their lifestyles. It's kinda like a species-specific form of synesthesia. Orcs can "see" the way ambient magic gathers around living things, gnomes can "see" the trace lines between things like stars and safe hand/foot holds on cliffs, and haufin can "see" by scent.
There's a lot more people species, of course, but these are the big two groups of related people. So that's a sample of how the ambient magic affects people by giving them some form of enhanced natural ability.
Outside of this, I have three methods for controlled magic. People discovered ways they can get ambient magic to do specific things.
the easiest and most mundane form is written magic. Dwarves and gnomes pioneered this. Runes and sigils carved into wood, bone, or stones/gems/metal, as well as those written with organic-based inks or blood, can make magic do a few simple things. it's used largely as a replacement for many things we might use electricity for, such as stove tops, indoor lighting, and water heating. Circular magic sigils created on flat surfaces that can be moved to break or join the lines allow people to turn them on and off.
spoken/singing magic, largely developed by elves with some unique forms developed by other groups like goblins and merfolk. this form of magic requires more careful study and focus, as a caster cannot break concentration or fumble their words/song. It's inefficient for mundane tasks, but has a much wider range of uses than any other form of magic. Controlling organic matter is a main function of this type of magic. Elves will sing trees into homes, doctors will work with a chorus to aid in medical operations.
the final and most risky method is soul magic. ambient magic is connected to souls, after all. people have developed a lot of spiritual rituals around this form of magic, so it is mostly used by religious leaders, like clerics and priests. To channel magic through one's own soul, deep meditation and a strong will are required. Many rituals involve harming one's body in some manner, always with a bone tool. This is because you can access much stronger magic if you put yourself closer to death. these rituals are usually supervised with magic singers around to ensure the soul magic user does not die. anchoring items like heavy ceremonial accessories or incense are often used as well. It is a very niche form of magic. It can be used to enhance one's personal ambient magic ability, use one's own life energy to heal another person in an emergency, and also communicate with the dead.
There are also some ways to combine the three forms of magic, though this usually just means a combination of spoken and written magic. Experimenting with magic can lead to dangerous results. There are also forbidden things, such as necromancy, soul binding, and time travel. these are all forbidden because they come with devastating side effects and don't actually work the way people want them to. there are limits to what magic can do, and trying to force it to do the impossible will always backfire.
